Mahdah ( ar, مَحْضَة, Maḥḍah, or '' Wilāyat Maḥḍah'' (), is an Omani territory north of the town of al Buraimi which

borders A border is a geographical boundary. Border, borders, The Border or The Borders may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * ''Border'' (1997 film), an Indian Hindi-language war film * ''Border'' (2018 Swedish film), ...

the emirates of

Sharjah Sharjah (; ar, ٱلشَّارقَة ', Gulf Arabic: ''aš-Šārja'') is the third-most populous city in the United Arab Emirates, after Dubai and Abu Dhabi, forming part of the Dubai-Sharjah-Ajman metropolitan area. Sharjah is the capital ...

Ajman Ajman ( ar, عجمان, '; Gulf Arabic: عيمان ʿymān) is the capital of the emirate of Ajman in the United Arab Emirates. It is the fifth-largest city in UAE after Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Al Ain. Located along the Persian Gulf, i ...

and

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...

. It was previously necessary to pass through Mahdah when travelling through Madam to reach the Ajman exclave of

Masfut Masfout is a village that forms part of the eponymous exclave of Masfout in Ajman, one of the seven emirates forming the United Arab Emirates. It is surrounded by Ras Al Khaimah, the Dubai exclave of Hatta and Oman ( Mahdha Wilayat of Al Buraimi ...

, as well as the Dubai exclave of Hatta, a tourist spot popular for its hotel, heritage village and the famous (although now a metalled road) Hatta track. The

Mleiha Mleiha, also Mileiha or Malaihah ( ar, ملَيْحَة), is a town in the Emirate of Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with a population of 4,768 (2015), located some south of the inland Sharjah town of Dhaid. It is the location of archa ...

road bypasses Mahdah for travel from the Emirates' coastal towns to Hatta and Masfut. Mahdah contains the township of Rawdah and is governed from Buraimi. It was traditionally home to the

Bani Kaab The Bani Kaab ( ar, بني كعب) (singular Al Kaabi ar, الكعبي) is an Arab tribe in Oman and the United Arab Emirates, also evident in other Gulf countries. Origins The tribe is associated with the area around and to the north of the O ...

tribe.

Border

Previously a 'soft' border, the road through Mahdah from the Emirates now has formal border entry and exit points, open only to GCC nationals. Crossing the Omani border at Mahdah represents an exit from/entry to the UAE. The trip to the Omani border at Hatta is a popular one for expatriates from qualifying countries performing a 'visa run' in order to renew their visit visas to the UAE. A visit visa is valid for one month, renewable at a police station up to three months but then requires an exit from the country. As a number of, mainly Western, nationalities acquire a 'visa on entry', a trip to the Hatta border post and then back results in the renewal of an expired three-month visit visa. This trip has been rendered a great deal less popular since Dubai, and the UAE in general, has reformed immigration practices and streamlined residence visa issuance and renewal. It is claimed the first Arab Ambassador to America, Ahmed Bin Na’man Al Kaabi, came from Mahdah in 1840. A district with the same Arabic name but with a different spelling of its name in English,

Madha The Omani territory of Madha ( ar, مَدْحَاء, madḥāʾ) or ''Wādī Madḥāʾ'' ( ar, وَادِي مَدْحَاء) is an exclave of the Musandam Governorate, enclaved by the United Arab Emirates (UAE); inside it, there is a second-or ...

is an Omani enclave on the East Coast of the UAE which surrounds Nahwa, itself an enclave of Sharjah. This unusual arrangement is known as a counter-enclave.

References

Oman–United Arab Emirates border crossings Populated places in Al Buraimi Governorate {{Oman-geo-stub